Reason #9

He's my best friend. He listens to me. He talks to me. We drink beer together. We burp together. We run/work-out together. We scarf cheeseburgers together. We watch testosterone movies together and we watch chick flicks together. We just like to chill together. His company and presence makes my world feel just right. And when I'm off kilter, he tells it to me straight and just like it is.

Proverbs 17:17
A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

Sad News

After a series of blood work, it has been determined that Bitty has 1 of 2 types of cancer. Her white blood cell count is at 80,000. Normal counts for cats are usually 4,000 to 20,000. This means she either has cancer in her bone marrow (worse case scenario) or has a tumor.

Other than chronic diarrhea and weight loss she is not exhibiting any other symptoms of discomfort. Most recently she has been social again after adjusting to BamBam. She has started sleeping on my bed again despite knowing the dog is somewhere in the room.

There are 2 treatment options.
1. Inexpensive doses of pregnizone to keep her comfortable for awhile.
2. Expensive further diagnostic tests and cat chemotherapy. Yes, there is such a thing and it does have positive results.

After already putting almost $1500 into vet bills for the Bitty in the last 3 months for issues unrelated to her current diagnosis and the big ticket item of the wedding, not to mention soaring gas and food prices, my lack of income ....... Danny and I have decided it would not make sense to spend thousands of dollars more for treatment that may or may not cure Bitty.

But its not just the money, she's a cat. And like all life, she too must die. We will give her the best quality of life we can while she is able to live. And yes, that means cans of tuna and no more diet food.

The vet says she has anywhere from 2 weeks to 6 months. Who knows. Its all bad timing with the wedding/honeymoon. But it is what it is.

And yes, my heart is broken with sadness about it. I do, DO love the Bitty.

Reason #10

He is a fabulous kisser. Thank you, Jesus! Enough said.

2 Corinthians 13:12
Greet one another with a holy kiss.

Reason #11

Chivalrous: (of a man or his behavior) marked by gracious courtesy and high-minded consideration especially to women. See Danny Dulin for example.

He opens doors for me. He pulls out the chair for me. He walks on the street side of the side walk. Yeah, sure lots of guys do that stuff. But he doesn't just do it for me. He does it for Lauren. I've seen him do it for others. Consistently. And he teaches Michael to do it.

Colossians 3:12
Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.

Lest We Forget

Friends and Family,

This is Danny and it is my FIRST post. Jacqueline has been patiently waiting for me to write my first post and admittedly I have been nervous. However, I thought it befitting to write my first post today...a day that is very important to me. Memorial Day.

Those of us who have served know how important it is to honor those who have paid the ultimate price for our freedom. That's not to say that those who have not served don't hold this day in their hearts as important. Those of us who have served are often thanked and praised on Memorial Day for serving and fighting and protecting. I want to take this opportunity to remind everyone that those of us that have served and are still living have another day Veteran's Day. This day is for those Heroes that have fallen. Now I don't want to paint a picture of an ungrateful soldier that would scoff at the kind words of my fellow Americans on this day, nor do I imply that you don't thank a Soldier, Airman, Marine, or Sailor for serving...that should be done on any day, but rather I am trying to deliver an understanding of the true meaning of this day Memorial Day. That understanding is that we spend time in prayer, we go visit a memorial, we educate our children and we remind others around us what a selfless sacrifice it is to give up your life for millions of people that you don't even know. All in the name of the United States of America. All in the name of freedom, security and safety of the United States of America. People can say what they want about the gas prices, the food prices, the deficit...complain about the president, congress, their state leaders...complain about the traffic yadda yadda yadda...but remind them that they have the FREEDOM to complain...the FREEDOM to move about whenever they want...the FREEDOM to pray however they want...all because somebody's brother, sister, father, mother, Uncle, Aunt, Husband, Wife, cousin, girlfriend, boyfriend paid that ultimate price so that they could.

Father in Heaven, thank you for those brave men and women that have sacrificed their lives so that we could have the freedoms we cherish here in this country. Father we lift up the hearts of the family members that they left behind so that their hearts would feel joy that they were loved so much that a life was sacrificed to protect them. Father we lift up the minds of those who don't have family members that died so they would have the wisdom to understand the multitude of men and women that loved this country so much that they sacrificed for their freedom too. Father I pray that you would prick all the hearts of all the people of this country, believers and non-believers, so that they would feel the depth of what these servicemen and women did for them.  Father we are grateful and humbled by their sacrifice. In Jesus' blessed name. AMEN!

These days should be remembered and observed in every generation, by every family, and in every province and in every city.  Esther 9:28

Reason #12

I love Danny's green eyes. They are beautiful. I'm sure he has had many, many women in his life tell him how beautiful his eyes are. But yay! Now they're mine! Most importantly, he is a man who honors God with his eyes.
Song of Solomon 4:9
". . . you have stolen my heart with one glance of your eyes . . ."

Reason #13

We laugh together. A lot. He laughs at my jokes. He gets my humor. He GETS my humor. His laugh always lightens my heart. He is cheerful and keeps me cheerful.
Proverbs 15:15
All the days of the oppressed are wretched,
but the cheerful heart has a continual feast.

Reason #14

I love Danny because he is faithful in daily prayer for the people in our lives. He consistently and faithfully prays for our children and MY friends.

Unfortunately, this has made me slack about praying for our children and my friends.


Philippians 4:6

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

My Babies

Click on the image to change them.

Our Boy Cooks Up

Thank God its over. Yes, American Idol is done with. We did not expect him to win, but certainly were rooting for him. All of us. Lauren, Danny, Zoe, Stuart, Lynn. Such a relief not to block off Tuesday and Wednesday nights anymore. I feel free. And sad. I will miss you Paula Abdul with your drunken stuper of using the English language and occasionally bizzare outfits. I will miss the texting with Danny and Lynn during the show. I will miss the phone calls with Zoe during commercials to analize and discuss. Ahhh.......

All I have to do is get through next week's season finale of LOST and I'm no longer a slave to television programming. It really is like crack.

Excerpt from AP

"So why did the older David best the younger one — the one who couldn't take a step on the "Idol" stage without a collective shriek coming up from every under-13-year-old girl in the audience?

One reason for Cook's winning appeal may be found in a rustling in the show's recent ratings: Viewership for teenagers 12-to-17 for "Idol" was down this season, and the median age of an "Idol" viewer, once in the mid-30s, is now up to 42, according to Nielsen Media Research."

Read full article HERE.

Raleigh Men

I know what you're thinking. "Hey, you're about to get married. Why a post on Raleigh men?"
Well, let's just say I'm glad my man's from VerJinYa.

Fluffy Yippy Dog Man
I have found it quite disturbing that in my very "young professionals" neighborhood, every guy who has a dog has a small yippy russel terrier or something fluffy the size of my foot. I find it ironic that I am the one with the large "masculine" dog (granted he's really Danny's). And when they see me approaching, they quickly scoop up their precious fluff balls so as to make sure the big dog heading toward them won' t make them afraid. You know how the saying is about judging someone by their pet? Ughh. Get a set of ..... Hmmm.

Men Without a Home or Job
On the way to and from school everyday, we pass the Wake County Homeless shelter for men. And there are tons of them. Black. White. Young. Old. Some sleep outside the building. Others are waiting for a bus. Many lounge about smoking. There is a story for each face, I'm sure. These are men who need to be saved. But many of them don't look like they want to be saved.

Firemen-to-be
Directly NEXT to the homeless shelter, is the Keeter Training Center for Rescue/Firemen. The contrast in the two government facilities next to each other is subtle until you see the recruits out training. In their matching yellow and black uniforms, standing in perfect formation ready to save lives. Ready to learn how to save other men.

Every time I drive by I always think, "When are they gonna set the building on fire and practice? I want to see them fight fire!" As we drove home from school today their practice fire building was smoking! But I didn't see fire and I didn't see any real action.

Mr. Wheelie or No Hands King
Once you pass the training center, over the bridge and are in the edge of the south of Raleigh, if you're lucky you'll get to see him. Mr. Wheelie as I call him. He is usually out every morning when the weather is nice --- riding his bike, but doing wheelies around a corner. Yes, he is quite good. He's 41 (according to his website) and is hoping to break the Guiness world record for the longest wheelie. He buys his bikes from Walmart. I'm not sure whether to admire or question his goal in life.

Did I mention I'm thrilled with my VerJinYa man???

Please Don't Stop the Music

Our DJ has a cool online application where you create your own playlist. And if they ain't got your song, it allows you to request it via iTunes. LOVE, LOVE technology!

Here's your chance to add to our wedding reception music. Danny's got the '70s covered with Earth, Wind & Fire, ABBA, and the Commodores.

Me? I got the '80s covered with classic Madonna, Divo, the Bangles and more.

C'mon. What song do you really want to hear at the reception??

That's right. This bad bride is gonna get down like nobody's business.



How sad. I'm so dated. Sigh.

Mother's Day

Mother's Day. The Mother of all days.

How many of you know my mother? How many of you have heard enough stories, you are grateful you don't know my mother? Well, if you're coming to the wedding, you'll get a peek at my mother. I'll start praying for your encounter now to be a "positive" one.

This weekend we went to visit my mother. Danny + Michael joined us for the day on Saturday. It was another interesting experience and always a personal struggle (failure of my character?) in relating to my mom. I know she means well. Don't all mothers? Don't all daughters?

Well, for mother's day my daughter fixed me an excellent Moroccan dinner. She couldn't have blanched the asparagus better if I'd done it my self. They were perfect and lightly drizzled with balsamic vinegar. There were candles and she even put my iPod on with my favorite playlist.

For dessert she cut up fresh strawberries and adorned the middle with bits of brownie and drizzled (there's that culinary term again) with melted chocolate. The idea was perfect, execution was not as successful as the asparagus.

The brownie mix was the microwave kind and if you're not careful you can overcook, it which she did. So when it cools, it then becomes crunchy. Quite crunchy. That didn't stop us from enjoying the strawberry with the "crunchy brownie cookie" dessert. And it was a good laugh. We decided to stay focused on the perfect asparagus.

A thoughtful card was also given. It was wonderful and heartfelt. And for moments when I think this child disregards anything I say or do, I know that isn't true. Daughters DO mean well.

I may not have the best mom in the world. And I may not be the best mom either. But we're connected for a reason.

After all, who do you think taught her how to blanch the asparagus just perfect?

RACE: And you?

I know, I know. There's a lot of talk about race especially with Obama-mania and all. I heard about this blog on NPR and found it thought provoking.
Check it out:
Exploring Race

I was curious about you. What is YOUR memory of experiencing racism? And what about being a racist (consciously or subconsciously)?

My friend Andy also touched on this subject on his blog in reference to the body of Christ: "Integration in the Church"

Pre-Wedding Purgatory

1: an intermediate state after engagement but before the wedding; specifically : a place or state of strange waiting period wherein according to Jacqueline doctrine the bride waits toiling about her day to attend to minute wedding details as to become fit for marriage.

2: a place or state of temporary lack of work and lots of napping. And dog walking.

Holding Hands

For some of you, having your spouse right next to you during church is nothing new. You've sat next to each other for years in church. Different churches, even. But maybe every Sunday you go through the same routine, drop off your kids in Sunday school and find your way to the sanctuary and sit in the same spot like you did in many Sunday mornings past.

I've been "single" for about 12 years now. And in all the times when I think about married life --- all of its obvious blessings and benefits--- the one thing I always looked forward to most was knowing I would have someone to sit next to in church. Sure, I've had Lauren, especially in recent years and its been great---worshiping as a "family" just the 2 of us. But in 2 years she's gone.

There is something so uniquely wonderful --- and I mean WONDERFUL --- about sitting next to Danny at church. Knowing that for the rest of our lives, we'll sit next to each other in church. There is something so incredibly sacred and comforting having, finally, my someone who I sit next to in church. I love this so much. Yes, we're a "young" couple and we'll be newlyweds and I hear the grumbles of folks that say, "Oh, just give it time."

How long have you been married? When was the last time you thought about what it feels like to sit in church alone despite hundreds of believers surrounding you? When was the last time you were grateful you had the hand of your spouse you could just reach over and hold or squeeze during prayer?

Married life? Yes, I'm looking forward to the obvious stuff. But my heart is so totally grateful to God for a life-long partner to sit with at church. To worship with. To learn about God with. To hold his hand during church.

The Graciousness of Uncertainty

Danny is reading "My Utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers. He generally shares it with me daily via email. This entry seems particularly applicable to us as we wait on God to provide Danny with a job in Raleigh.
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“It doth not yet appear what we shall be.” 1 John 3:2

Naturally, we are inclined to be so mathematical and calculating that we look upon uncertainty as a bad thing. We imagine that we have to reach some end, but that is not the nature of spiritual life. The nature of spiritual life is that we are certain in our uncertainty, consequently we do not make our nests anywhere. Common sense says—“Well, supposing I were in that condition…” We cannot suppose ourselves in any condition we have never been in.

Certainty is the mark of the common-sense life; gracious uncertainty is the mark of the spiritual life. To be certain of God means that we are uncertain in all our ways, we do not know what a day may bring forth. This is generally said with a sigh of sadness; it should be rather an expression of breathless expectation. We are not uncertain of the next step, but we are certain of God. Immediately we abandon to God, and do the duty that lies nearest, He packs our life with surprises all the time. When we become advocates of a creed, something dies; we do not believe God, we only believe our belief about Him. Jesus said, “Except ye…become as little children.” Spiritual life is the life of a child. We are not uncertain of God, but uncertain of what He is going to do next. If we are only certain in our beliefs, we get dignified and sever and have the ban of finality about our views; but when we are rightly related to God, life is full of spontaneous, joyful uncertainty and expectancy.

“Believe also in Me,” said Jesus, not –“Believe certain things about Me.” Leave the whole thing to Him, it is gloriously uncertain how He will come in, but He will come. Remain loyal to Him.